Kingston’s AC Hotel Kingston ballroom transformed into a celebration of motherhood and iconic Jamaican music this past Sunday, as the ‘To Mom With Love’ tribute event rolled out the red carpet for mothers across the region. Curated as a two-part Mother’s Day concert series, the event delivered an unforgettable evening of reggae and soul, headlined by legendary performers Third World and Marcia Griffiths, whose dynamic sets had the packed venue singing and dancing from start to finish.
While the afternoon opening show failed to draw the crowd organizers had projected, the evening performance turned out to be a sold-out success. The stacked lineup featured rising and established acts including Robert Minott, Nestor, Glenn Jones, Kumar Bent (who shared the stage with Third World), and The Super Band under the direction of Grub Cooper, each bringing their own unique energy to the tribute.
Marcia Griffiths, the undisputed queen of reggae, delivered a career-spanning set that left the audience cheering. Over 45 minutes, she ran through her decades of chart-topping hits, from early fan favorites like *Feel Like Jumping* to timeless originals including *Dreamland*, *I Shall Sing*, *Fire Burning*, and *Land of Love*. She also paid homage to other iconic artists with soulful covers of Cilla Black’s *Conversation*, Dionne Warwick’s *Don’t Make Me Over*, and Nina Simone’s *Young, Gifted And Black* — the 1970 classic she first recorded alongside Bob Andy. The performance built to a rousing climax with her signature hit *Electric Boogie*, which had the whole venue on their feet; multiple audience members were even invited on stage to join the iconic dance alongside Griffiths. At the conclusion of her set, event organizers presented Griffiths with a special lifetime achievement award, honoring her extraordinary 60-plus-year career that began in the early 1960s.
Following a solid, crowd-pleasing set from R&B singer Glenn Jones, who performed his best-known tracks including *We’ve Only Just Begun* and *Show Me*, reggae pioneers Third World took the stage to close out the night. Their hour-long set drew from the band’s extensive catalog of classic hits, including *Now That We Found Love*, *Reggae Ambassador*, *Sense of Purpose*, and *96 Degrees in The Shade*. For the track *Always Around*, lead singer AJ Brown welcomed his wife Tamara on stage for a heartfelt duet, before wowing the crowd with a solo rendition of the Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brightman opera standard *Time to Say Goodbye*. His powerful, soaring vocals earned a spontaneous standing ovation from the audience, and smoothly transitioned into the final numbers: *Try Jah Love* and a cover of Jimmy Cliff’s *We All Are One*, wrapping up a warm, joyful celebration of mothers and Jamaican music.